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—andmoreagain presents—Donny Benét
w/ Fancy Gap
at Cat's Cradle
Carrboro, NC
doors 7pm // show 8pm
$25 adv // $28 day of show
On sale now
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DONNY BENÉT
"Jeffrey Lebowski, is "The Dude," Donny Benét, is "The Don." Quite simply."
Praised and panned by critics as "Prince on a serious budget cut," Donny Benét is best described as the favourite nephew to Uncles Giorgio Moroder, Alan Vega and Michael McDonald.
Hailing from Australia, Benét's debut album Don't Hold Back confused and intrigued many whilst quickly establishing him as a cult figure in the Australian music scene. Donny's piece de resistance The Don, which featured the breakthrough single Konichiwa facilitated his first invitation to tour Europe in 2018. In no time at all Europe had caught a fever that only Donny could quell each time he returned to perform. Several sold out European tours later, alongside regular US touring led Donny to follow up with his 2020 album Mr Experience and instrumental EP Le Piano.
2023 saw Donny creating his own label Donnyland Records, which led to the announcement and release of his 6th album Infinite Desires.
Touring Europe and the US since 2018, Donny regularly sells out headline shows and has performed at festivals such as Outsidelands, Pukkelpop, Green Man Festival, Rock Werchter, Dour Festical, Down the Rabbit Hole, Pohoda Festival, Zomerparkfeest and Rock For Churchill, to name a few.
A perfectionist, Benét writes, performs and records entirely by himself at the renowned Donnyland Studios. Vintage synthesisers and drum machines are used exclusively by Donny when presenting his hot takes on life, love and relationships. A masterful bassist, his songs are instantly recognised by their signature basslines, timeless production and tongue in cheek lyrics.
・Listen: open.spotify.com/artist/1EiNEyiSrpB6BVxt58BnNN
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FANCY GAP
On their self-titled debut album, Fancy Gap–the duo of singer/songwriter Stuart McLamb (The Love Language) and songwriter/producer Charles Crossingham–takes listeners on a journey that steers through life’s melodies with windows down. It’s a country-tinged, radio-ready sound, yet delves deep into universal themes. From stirring reflections on death and aging to the joyous celebrations of life, love, and triumph, every track on Fancy Gap captures different facets of the human experience. With a twang evoking the heartland and a widescreen perspective hinting at something greater, McLamb and Crossingham explore poignant moments of laughter and loss, enduring bonds of friendship, and the ups and downs of relationships.
McLamb has always been a heart-on-his-sleeve songwriter–one that’s also a traveler, tourer, hand-holder, relationship whisperer, and chronicler of beginnings and endings–and the bittersweetness that courses through The Love Language’s four albums is a voyage worth all the heartbreak. As he began working on the band’s fifth album in early 2020, McLamb took some early demos to Crossingham, whom he had known for nearly a decade but became closer with after moving back to Raleigh, North Carolina, that March. The pandemic struck in the midst of feeling out those early ideas; the two sheltered in Crossingham’s mountain cabin in Fancy Gap, Virginia, and questions of what life would look like when the world started over seeped into their late-night songwriting sessions. What began as a producer/artist collaboration blossomed into a close-knit co-writing project, rooted in Crossingham’s inspired belief and admiration in McLamb’s talents, and the musical kinship that the two had forged.
As the tracks were fleshed out, a collective idea of song and place became entwined in how the two wanted these compositions to sound and feel. “Charles and I wanted to make an album that sounded like the music we wanted to hear. It just so happens that at the time we were listening to a lot of classic '90s radio rock and a lot of classic country radio 98.1 WBRF out of Galax, VA,” McLamb explains. Fancy Gap was born. “Over the next two years,” he adds. "We hustled through odd jobs to keep our heads above water while dedicating ourselves to crafting the best songs we could.” The music took shape during recording sessions at the cabin, as well as impromptu jam sessions where Crossingham played guitar and McLamb handled drums and vocals. "The lockdown had us feeling cooped up, so we just let loose and rocked out. Making music with a friend like that was a blast—it took me back to the early days of jamming in my parents' garage with my younger brother," McLamb recalls fondly. They would then refine their best ideas at the Fancy Gap cabin, utilizing a portable rack unit of Quad Eight preamps. "Many of the lead vocals were captured in the moment, often on the first or second take," he says.
Reaching out to fellow artists and musicians became a priority as their excitement around the music continued to grow, and also felt like the thread to sew together the fabric of life after lockdown. “During the pandemic, we–and a lot of our artist friends who were struggling–needed a belief that there would be a light at the end of this,” Crossingham explained. “As the songs began to come together, we wanted to open our tent, and ask some of those friends and artists we respected to be a part of Fancy Gap with us.” As such, the album features masterful contributions from Sharon Van Etten (vocals on “Strawberry Moon”); Taking Back Sunday’s Adam Lazzara (vocals on “Filthy Habits”); Rami Jaffee (The Foo Fighters, The Wallflowers) on the Hammond B3 organ and Wurlitzer; acclaimed session guitarist Will McFarlane (Bonnie Raitt, The Mountain Goats, Etta James); and Jon Graboff on pedal steel ( Willie Nelson, Noel Gallagher, M. Ward, Norah Jones). Fancy Gap was finalized over five sessions with Grammy-award-winning engineer Craig Alvin (‘Album of the Year’ Kacey Musgraves’ Golden Hour), who mixed the album at Noble Steed Studios in Muscle Shoals, Alabama.
As McLamb’s timeless voice leads the way–all classic pop timbre and heart swells, casting notes toward the sky–the songs explore love found (“Little Heart Racer”) and love lost (“Diamond Cutter”), the passing of loved ones (“Magnolias”), and hazy dreams and addictions of all kinds (“Old Ways”). The album pulses with a front porch phrasing and tempos that echoes the mountain locale of its recording; “How to Dance” and “Little Heart Racer” swing with a breezy roadhouse exuberance countered by the sweet melancholy of “Strawberry Moon.” Throughout, Fancy Gap also finds McLamb and Crossingham conjuring the pop leanings of early Counting Crows and The Lemonheads (“Filthy Habits”), the chordal phrasing and harmonies of Joni Mitchell and Crosby, Stills & Nash (“Whispering Winds”), the stadium-sized sing-along choruses of The Wallflowers (“40,000 Miles”), and the expansive western terrains akin to a more psychedelic Marty Robbins (“Diamond Cutter”).
Fancy Gap, for all the genuine emotional resonance it hits lyrically, feels like a hands-in-the-breeze springtime ride at dusk, with a treasure trove of your favorite albums under your seat and nothing in front of you but gravel roads and wistful speed. It’s a musical expedition that transcends the sum of its parts, painting sonic landscapes that linger in the heart and soul. – Roy Bourne, April 2024
・Listen: open.spotify.com/artist/3TiEUyHr2aKkugeJTdVXFc
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Cat's Cradle, 206 E Main St, Carrboro, NC 27510-2310, United States,Carrboro, North Carolina
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